The Journey to Station Square
by Kimmie2
Summary: After ARK, Shadow is found and taken care of. Now, he wants to find the gang but he's gonig to need help. Shadow, Big the Cat, Cream and Mina set out to find Sonic and friends who now live in Station Square. Will it be harder than they think? R&R!
1. Default Chapter

It was a dark night in the jungle of the Mystic Ruins, which was quite normal due to the fact there are no lights there. The fireflies were out though, lighting up the forest in their own magical way. It was the perfect night for lovers but there were none to be found in the silent jungle. Even the explorers turned in for the night. Tonight, in the jungle, was still to be enjoyed though, by a special pair of best friends-and nighttime fishing.  
  
"Oh, Froggy, What a beautiful night to fish." A big purple cat with a fishing rod said. The cat's name was Big. He carelessly knocked his rod up against the branches that stuck out from the path as he made his way to the river.  
  
A green frog hopped up beside him, carefully evading Big's feet so he wouldn't get stepped on. He crocked in response and hopped ahead of Big, leading the way through the jungle.  
  
"Lead the way to the 'Secret Spot', Froggy!" Big shouted. The 'Secret Spot' was the part of the river that flows into a tunnel before leaving the jungle area. (If you played Sonic Adventure DX, you'll know what I'm talking about. Almost all the places in this fanfic are from the game ^_^) It's the only way out of the jungle for the fish, so it is the perfect place to catch them unsuspected.  
  
Froggy reached the 'Secret Spot' and perched himself on the lowest branch of the nearest tree. He had to be ready to cheer his friend on.  
  
Big arrived and sat by the edge of the water. He cast his fishing rod into the water and positioned himself ready by sitting with his two feet out in front of him. Then, he waited.  
  
Now, underneath the water, something strange was being carried with the current. It was big and black and it defiantly wasn't a fish. The fish swimming next to it eyed it before swimming ahead; it didn't seem to move at all. One fish bumped up against it, causing one of its hands to shift position so that you could see it was wearing a glove. As it neared the tunnel, a hook snagged its glove.  
  
"I think I got something, Froggy! I'm gonna reel it in!" Big shouted. Froggy jumped up and down on the tree branch while Big stood up and reeled it. "Wow, this must be a big one!" Big tugged and tugged but he still couldn't lift the 'fish' out of the water. Then finally he tugged once more, using all this strength.  
  
The 'fish' flew over his head along with the rod and landed behind him with a thud. Big didn't hear the usual sound of a fish flopping around. He turned around and saw the lump of black. "That's not a fishy." Big pointed out.  
  
Froggy jumped from the tree branch to the black thing's side. He nudged it and crocked. "What is it, Froggy?" Big asked. He went over to it and turned it so he could see its face. "Hey, it's a hedgehog!"  
  
Indeed it was. It was a black hedgehog with red streaks on the ends of his quills. He had white chest hair and big boots with holes on the bottom of them. (Remember, this is Big's description, ^_^;) He had gloves on with bracelets around them; one of the bracelets was missing.  
  
Big cocked his head to one side and said, "This hedgehog is different from the one that saved you, Froggy. That one was blue and this one isn't." Big poked the hedgehog but it didn't move. "He doesn't look so good.I don't know how to take care of him. I know! We'll bring him to that place with other animals! What was it called again? Um.something with village in it.uh.oh yeah! Knothole Village. I heard blue hedgehog lives there. Maybe blue hedgehog will take care of black hedgehog there."  
  
Big picked up the hedgehog and slung it over his back. "C'mon Froggy, It's not to far from here. Let's go!" With that, the three of them set out for an adventure, one of them not even knowing it.  
  
@---------  
  
"In conclusion, the Project: Shadow was a success. He saved the world from sure destruction but at the cost of his life. Still, his ultimate job on Earth is done and we can only hope he is happy where he is now." A white bat with sapphire eyes read from her paper. She slumped over her desk and groaned, "No matter how many times I try to finish this report for the President, the ending always comes out wrong. I'm not happy with it. Maybe it's because I don't want my ending to be true." She glanced at the report and threw it across the room. The papers scattered everywhere, making the room look like a tornado hit it.  
  
"If I were to show this report to the team, I know it would make them only sadder. Especially Sonic." Rouge got up to look out her window. Bright stars filled the night sky; it was a beautiful sight to see. "Sonic is up there, on ARK. I don't know what he thinks he's going to find but I hope he'll come back happier.and soon. Amy is getting worried." Rouge sighed.  
  
She went around her room and picked up all the scattered pieces of paper. She also noticed, out of boredom, how much her cleavage showed when she bent down. An image ran through Rouge's head of Knuckles blushing redder than his fur when he first saw her.*ahem*.stuff. She smiled to herself as she shuffled the papers together. "Maybe.maybe if I go visit Knuckles, I can write my report better. I haven't seen him since ARK anyway." Rouge said. "I don't know if he'll be happy to see me but it's worth a shot."  
  
@-----  
  
Knock, knock, knock. Silence.  
  
KNOCK, Knock, knock.  
  
"Ugh.who could that be.at this hour?" Mumbled a yellow mongoose with long, wavy purple hair. She got up from bed and blinked her forest green eyes a couple times before they came into focus. She slipped out of bed and went into her mother's room. "Mom, the door."  
  
Her mother had the pillows in front of her face and ears, trying to block out the sound from the knocking. "Mina dear, could you get the door?"  
  
"Yes, momma." Mina said. She left her mother's room and walked to the front of the hut, still trying to rub the sleep from her eyes. She opened the door to see a humongous purple cat and a green frog. The cat had something held in his hands. Mina stepped out side the house, knowing the cat couldn't be invited in because he was too big to fit through the doorway.  
  
The cat introduced himself, "I'm a cat.my name is Big." He looked down at the frog and said, "This is my friend Froggy."  
  
"Nice to meet you, Big and Froggy. My name is Mina. What are you doing out at this hour?" Mina asked.  
  
"You seem like nice girl. Can you take care of friend?" Big asked. He moved in big hands more towards Mina and opened them. Big held a male black and red hedgehog. He had a few burn marks that were now visibly clear as daylight approached and he was covered in water as if he just came out of a pool.  
  
"Oh my god! What happened?" Mina asked, worry edged in her face.  
  
"I found hedgehog when fishing. I caught him. I can't take care of him so I bring him to blue hedgehog. Do you know where blue hedgehog is?" Big asked.  
  
"You mean Sonic? He hasn't been back for months. I think he also lives in Station Square. Don't worry though, I can take care of your friend until Sonic returns." Mina said. She took another look at the hedgehog and realized she did want to help him very much so.  
  
"Great! Thank you, Mina!" Big said. He dropped the hedgehog into Mina's arms. Mina thought he was going to be heavy, but he was light as a feather. Big and Froggy turned to leave but then Big added, "I live in jungle in Mystic Ruins. Come visit with friend."  
  
"Okay! Bye Big, Bye Froggy!" Mina shouted as they disappeared into the brush. She looked down at the black and red hedgehog in her arms and sighed, "How do I get myself into these things?" 


	2. Chapter 1

A pink hedgehog waited with a two-tailed orange fox at Tail's Workshop, watching the skies for their favorite blue hedgehog. The pink hedgehog, Amy Rose, sighed, "Tails, are you sure Sonic is coming home tonight?"  
  
"Of course I'm sure!" Tails sighed. This was about the fifth time Amy asked him. "Sonic contacted me and said he was coming tonight. He is a little late though, I wonder what's keeping him?"  
  
"I can't wait 'till he comes!" Amy squealed, "As soon as I see him I'm going to give him a big hug!"  
  
"And suffocate him." Tails added. "Promise me you'll wait a bit? I'm sure you can wait to hug him."  
  
"All right." Amy groaned, "Just for Sonic."  
  
Just then, there was a bright light in the sky. It got bigger and bigger until it was clear that it was a blue Tornado only build for space. A white- gloved hand waved from the driver's seat as the space plane landed on Tail's landing field. The top opened up and Sonic jumped out. He had a huge grin on his face and gave Amy and Tails a thumb's up sign.  
  
"Sonic!" Amy and Tails shouted. They ran over to where he was standing. Amy went back on her promise and hugged Sonic. Luckily, he hugged her back. "Oh, Sonikku! I missed you soooooo much!" Amy cried.  
  
Sonic smiled and said, "I missed you guys too." He looked at Tails who was giving Amy a nasty look, "Hey, little buddy! Anything happen while I was gone?"  
  
"We wouldn't know." Tails said, "We've been waiting for you the whole time. We just been in Mystic Ruins and you know news rarely ever gets here."  
  
"You look a lot happier now, Sonic. What happened?" Amy Rose asked, finally letting go of Sonic.  
  
"Well," Sonic started, glancing at the passenger seat, "I just got my head cleared up. It's nice there, not scary at all like it appears."  
  
"That's great, Sonic. Did you find anything there, perhaps about Shadow?" Amy asked.  
  
"No." Sonic said, bowing his head.  
  
"Sonic, she didn't mean to mention that!" Tails said. Tails knew that Sonic always got depressed when hearing Shadow's name. Apparently, he still hasn't gotten over it yet.  
  
"It's all right." Sonic said. "It looked like G.U.N. took all the important documents. There was not one piece of paper left."  
  
"You must be tired. I suppose we can head back to Station Square now." Tails said. Sonic nodded and yawned. @-------  
  
As the first rays of sunshine peaked through the window of the hut, Mina woke up from her sleep. She was surprised she woke up so early, with those nighttime visitors. She walked over to her mirror and brushed her hair into place. As she did so, the memories of last night came back to her.  
  
After Big and Froggy left, Mina took the hedgehog inside. Her mother was then up and Mina told her the whole story. Her mother didn't mind the guest and when Mina volunteered to clean him up, her mother happily suggested that she would do it instead. Mina's mother then brought the hedgehog into the spare bedroom. Mina had gone to sleep right after that. No matter how exciting it was, she just wasn't a night owl.  
  
"Hello, dear. Good morning!" Mina's mother said. She cheerfully sang over the sound of bacon and eggs frying in a pot. Her mother had the voice of a songbird, just like her.  
  
"You're making breakfast?" Mina asked, taking a seat at the kitchen table. She eyed her extra large t-shirt nightgown as it road up from being at her knees to the middle of her legs. She pulled it down in frustration, noting she'd better wear the matching pants next time no matter how hot it was in bed wearing them.  
  
"Of course. We have company, don't we?" Mina's mother said. She hummed as she put the bacon and eggs on a plate. "By the way, can you go check if he's up? If he is, I'm sure he is hungry."  
  
Mina nodded and went into the spare bedroom. The hedgehog was just as he was when he put to bed last night. "He must be a heavy sleeper." Mina mumbled. She walked over to his bedside. There was a band-aid on his cheek, torso, and the side of one of his ears; that was where the worst burn marks were. The rest seemed to have disappeared as if they were never there. Mina sat on the bed and shook him gently. "Hey, wake up."  
  
She was about to say his name when she remembered she didn't know it. 'I guess Big didn't know his name either.' Mina thought.  
  
She noticed he didn't even stir. He had the same look on his face too, like he was stone. 'Wait, could he dead? He looks lifeless!" Mina checked his pulse to find that it was still there. She laid her hand on his chest too, she could feel him breathing. "Whew, thank goodness!" Mina sighed. "But I still wonder.why he won't wake up." Her hand found it's way to the side of his face. She traced the side of his cheek to his nose still deep in thought. "I wonder.if he's like sleeping beauty or something." Her finger traced over his lips. 'No way!' Mina thought, retracting her hand. 'That's so stupid!'  
  
'Ever since Sonic broke my heart, I promised myself I wouldn't fall in love again. It also means this guy! I don't even know him and my heart is beating so fast! I fall in love so easily.it's not fair.' Mina thought, the pain in her heart rising.  
  
"Mina!" Her mother called from the kitchen, "Is he up?"  
  
"No mom!" Mina shouted back. She looked at him again and sighed, "I have to baby sit this morning so I can't wait for him to wake up. I know, I'll write him a card to tell him where he is." Mina paused, "My mom will be home but I don't know what she'll tell him."  
  
@----------  
  
"Thank you again, Mina. I know this is early for baby-sitting but-" Mrs. Wilma Hedgehog started as she got together the last of her things.  
  
"Really, it's okay. Baby-sitting is my job." Mina said, sweat-dropping. Mrs. Hedgehog always was like that; she cares too much for people who are doing what they are required to do.  
  
"Yes, but you'll be watching Becky and Mach today. Mach is already seven but Becky is just a baby, she can't run let alone walk yet and Mach is a very fast runner. I don't know how you'll be able to tie both of them down." Mrs. Hedgehog said, pick up her green purse.  
  
"Oh, Mrs. Hedgehog! You handle them everyday. I'll be fine!" Mina said, pushing her out the door. "Go have fun at your quilt club. Bye!" Mina closed the door behind her and sighed, "Okay, now. Where are they?"  
  
Suddenly, a green blur flew around the room, stopping just short at Mina's feet. The blur was Mach, a green hedgehog with orange eyes. He grinned showing a missing tooth. "Mina! Are we going to go running again today?"  
  
"Sorry," Mina said, patting his head, "But not today. I'm watching your little sister today too."  
  
"Awww.That's not fair! I want to run! I want to be as good as Sonic so I have to keep practicing. You're the only one who can keep up with me!" Mach whined.  
  
"Sonic doesn't run all the time, you know." Mina said "I'm sure he'll be proud of you when he gets to see you. We'll just have a relaxing day on the front porch, okay." Mach groaned but nodded his head in agreement.  
  
@--------  
  
".So then I presume your trip went well." Rouge said, talking to Sonic on her cell phone. She was now on a train to Mystic Ruins. Her plan was to go to Red Mountain and catch an updraft to Angel Island. She listened for a few more minutes and said, "Okay, I'll let you go now, Bye."  
  
Rouge looked out the window to see the skyscrapers leaving and the forests appearing. The forests reminded her of the time when she went camping and came back with mosquito bites all over. She grimaced at the thought. 'I'll never get used to this wilderness thing.' Rouge sighed, 'I've been in the city too long I think."  
  
@-------  
  
Mina sat on the edge of the porch, piling baby blocks on top of each other only to have Becky knock them down. She was too busy thinking to notice so she picked up the pieces and started to build them again. Mach lay lazily on the porch, counting the leaves on the trees.  
  
'Wonder how that guy is doing?' Mina thought, "I wonder if he even woke up.let alone survived my mom and her sweetness.' She looked at Becky who giggled as she knocked down the blocks.  
  
Suddenly, a loud crash was heard at the end of the village, followed by an explosion and a mechanical roar. A bear ran by and shouted, "A giant robot sent by Eggman is here!"  
  
Princess Sally got on the speakerphones that were installed when Sonic and the gang left, designed for emergencies. "Please remain calm." She said, her voice echoed throughout the village, "Villagers please head to the underground safety zone! Freedom Fighters meet me at the castle!"  
  
Mina and Mach bounced to their feet right away. Mina picked up Becky and grabbed Mach's arm. They followed the crowd of villagers to the safety zone. Mach pulled out of Mina's grasp and yelled, "I'm gonna help to destroy the robot! Don't worry!" With that he sped off in the direction of the explosions.  
  
"NO! MACH!" Mina screamed. She quickly looked around and saw her mother nearby. She sped over to her. "Mother, I have to get Mach! Can you watch Becky until I come back?"  
  
Mina's mom took Becky and said, "Sure, dear. Just be careful."  
  
Mina looked around again and said, "Mom, where is the Hedgehog? Did you leave him behind?"  
  
She replied, "He woke up and left when the explosions happened. I don't know where he went, to make the story short. I'm sure he'll be fine. Now, hurry!"  
  
Mina nodded and shot off; the wind that trailed behind made the leaves scatter. She was running so fast, she could only see the path ahead of her. Everything else looked like a blur. Soon the robot was in sight. It was a shake-shaped red robot with glistening metal teeth. It had guns implanted on its sides too. Mina saw Mach zooming in to spin dash it. "Mach! Stop!" She yelled. She was able to grab him before the robot saw him.  
  
Dust scattered everywhere as Mina stopped, steam sizzling from her boots. He looked him up and down and noticed another tooth was missing from his mouth and the gum was freshly bleeding. Mach noticed where she looked and said, "That was a loose baby tooth, and it fell out when I hit the robot."  
  
Mina growled, "I can't wait to see you get in trouble for this Mach! This was a bad thing to do." She sighed and softly spoke to him, "Until you have been excepted as a Freedom Fighter, you must never do something like this again. Understand?"  
  
"Yes, I-I'm sorry." Mach whimpered; fresh tears fell down his face.  
  
"Good." Mina said. She turned around to see that the robot didn't notice them in the trees. She turned back to Mach and said, "I want you to stay here until we can escape. The robot can't see in the trees. Don't move." When Mach nodded, sniffling Mina ran out of the bushes. She waved her hands and screamed, "Hey! Come after me!"  
  
The robot roared and shot at Mina. The four bullets were near the ground so they were easy to dodge. She jumped over the first to that flew close the grass, causing them to blow up when they hit the ground. The second pair was flying right over her head, so Mina tumbled to the ground, avoiding those as well. Mina bounced off of the nearest tree so that she flew above the robot's head. She landed right on its skull and pounded her fist into it, hoping her punches would break through the metal. Unfortunately, She didn't even make a dent.  
  
The robot's tails hovered over her like a shadow for a few seconds before coming down on her. She managed to dodge the tail but she fell off the snake robot, hitting her head as she hit the ground. Mina slowly got up, the pain in her head making it difficult to do. The robot took his advantage and his tail around Mina's body. He was going to crush her!  
  
Mina could faintly hear Mach's voice; he sounded sad and scared even though Mina couldn't tell what he was saying. The pounding in her head was too loud. When she first felt the metal tail squeeze around her body, the tone of Mach's voice changed. He sounded happy now. 'Heh.probably because he gets to see his baby-sitter get crushed like on the television.' Mina thought.  
  
She heard the sound of scraping metal next and another roar from the robot. Suddenly, the tail unraveled her. Instead of falling to the ground she fell on to something soft and furry. She felt hands wrap around her waist and victory shouts from Mach. When her head stopped spinning she opened her eyes and pulled back from the embrace. She looked straight into a pair of ruby red eyes belonging to a hedgehog. "Ah, uh.thank you." Mina said.  
  
"No problem," He said. Faced away from her and looked at the robot. The robot still switched but otherwise it was finished.  
  
This gave Mina enough time to focus. She looked at the hedgehog again and all of a sudden it clicked. The hedgehog who saved her was the same one Big gave to her to take care of. He was black with red on the end of his quills with white chest hair- the band-aids were still on him too. 'I guess I didn't notice because I had never seen his eyes.'  
  
Mach ran up to Mina and hugged her, "I'm sorry, Mina! I didn't mean for you to get hurt all because of me. I'm really sorry!"  
  
"It's alright. I had to fight anyway; the Freedom Fighters didn't come yet. It's my fault for not being stronger." Mina said, smiling. She walked over to the hedgehog and placed her hand on his shoulder. "So, what's your name?"  
  
@------  
  
Shadow the Hedgehog volunteered to wash the dishes after supper that night. Mina still couldn't get used to the fact that 'sleeping beauty' was awake; she just couldn't imagine him awake. It was just weird. She sat down on a sofa and watched the fireplace. Her mother started up a fire in it. It wasn't cold out but the fire didn't warm much either. She watched the flames lick the top of the brick chimney.  
  
She felt the couch move next to her and saw that Shadow sat there. They both were silent, watching the flames dance. Then, Mina asked, "Shadow, do you Sonic the Hedgehog?"  
  
"Yes," Shadow replied, "I fought against him as his enemy when we first met. At the end, I realized what I was doing was wrong and I teamed up with Sonic to stop the Space Colony ARK from crashing into the Earth."  
  
"I see." Mina replied. She didn't learn much about what had happened because she was a civilian and not a Freedom Fighter or royalty. She knew that the blown up moon had to do with the space colony but she never knew anything else.  
  
"I have to find Sonic again and the rest of them like Amy and Tails and Rouge. They probably still think I'm dead but they must know the truth." Shadow said.  
  
"What? How could they think you were dead?" Mina asked.  
  
"After stopping the ARK from falling, I lost my Super Form and plummeted down to Earth. They weren't able to follow me or anything since the atmosphere was so bad."  
  
"Then," Mina said, "That's when you landed in the jungle river I think. That's where Big the Cat found you."  
  
"I guess so," Shadow said, "But I don't remember a thing since I fell." They both fell silent for a moment and watched the wood get smaller and the fire get bigger. Shadow turned his gaze over to her and asked, "Are you sure you are okay. You took it pretty hard to the head when you fell."  
  
"Oh no! I-I'm fine." Mina stuttered, blushing. "I mean I tried my best to fight that robot but it looks like speed is my only weapon. I can't actually attack; I'm not strong enough to. If you didn't arrive I'd be-"  
  
"Don't think of it that way," Shadow interrupted. "I was really impressed by how you fought the robot. You had the right strategy but you don't have the power. I think if you get a weapon of some sort you'll do just fine." He thought of Amy Rose with her hammer. She, like Mina, only had speed to rely on but She had her hammer to protect her.  
  
"That's really nice of you to say," Mina said, blushing redder this time.  
  
"I'm only telling the truth." Shadow said, smiling. 


End file.
